Calif. Drought Means More Imported Produce

San Joaquin Valley, Where Half of U.S. Fruits and Vegetables are Grown, Hit Hard; State Considers More Water Restrictions

(CBS)  The talk in sunny California these days is about water - specifically, the lack of it. Legislators there are working a sweeping plan to overhaul the state's water management system.

The plan includes tough new rules forcing residents to use 10 percent less water by the year 2015. CBS News correspondent Sandra Hughes reports on why such measures are needed.

To combat California's water woes, everyone is having to cut back - and drought buster David Jones is making sure of it.

"It was approximately seven minutes from the time we left the yard before we encountered our first violation," said Jones, who enforces water rules for L.A.'s Department of Water and Power.

"In L.A., you can only water twice a week or face fines up to $600," he said.

"I certainly can't afford a ticket so I'm really glad he just gave me a warning," said Melissa Jordan, one violator Jones caught.

The conservation is needed because almost half the state is in severe drought. Towns and farms in the San Joaquin Valley - known as "the nation's breadbasket" - have been hit hard. About half of U.S. fruits, nuts and vegetables are grown there.

Wheat farmer Todd Allen could only harvest 40 of his 600 acres.

"It's getting to the point where give me water or give me death," he said. "I laid off five employees and some of them have been working here anywhere from 15 to 20 years."

More than half a million acres of California farmland have gone unplanted. Farmers don't just blame the three-year drought.

They're angry over new environmental rules aimed at protecting the endangered delta smelt. Because the fish can be sucked into pumps that distribute water to farm towns, the pumps have been turned down, delivering less water.

As California crop losses continue and farms begin to fold, produce prices will eventually go up. But there may be a more pressing matter. Food safety experts warn with fewer locally grown choices, there will be more foreign-grown produce on the shelves.

"Imported produce is three times more likely than produce that was grown in the U.S. to have salmonella or shigella or other contaminants that can sicken consumers," said Elanor Starmar of the advocacy group Food & Water Watch.

Back in L.A., the drought-busting may be backfiring; officials fear the rush of water through aging pipes on the two days a week when watering is allowed has caused more than 30 water main explosions (and one giant sinkhole).

In the San Joaquin Valley it's hopes that are sinking along with jobs. Unemployment has reached almost 40 percent in some places -and those who used to grow food are standing in line for it.

[kimmonterey]

Wrong-o. We are in the third year of a drought! And, if anything got "stolen", the farmers "stole" the water from the fish -- and the environment. We are ONLY talking about the San Joaquin Valley -- which is essentially a DESERT. There are no "dust bowl conditions" --just a few fallow annual crop fields within water districts that have very junior "if-and-when-available" water rights. And those annual crop fields are for low-value crops like wheat or cotton, in a sea of very green, lush, and irrigated high-dollar crops like nut trees and vines. And, there are a few orchards that have been allowed to die because they are at the end of their useful lifespan (~20 years); and instead of immediately ripping them out as is usually done, they are being left standing for some dramatic fake "the fish did this to me" hyperbole. We will not starve if we grow a little less cotton and wheat this year (and, by the way, it was a record year for tomatoes). The media and the American people are being incredibly "played" by the "astroturfing" of high-priced PR firms hired by the biggest water district in the country (Westlands Water District) -- which has very junior water rights, but lots of lawyers and lobbyists. They have tried to kill many worthy federal projects in order to get the funding lining their own pockets. They would gladly swindle the American public into letting a few species go extinct in order to keep the federal government subsidizing their way of life -- as they have for the past 40 years with their subsidized water and subsidized drainage and subsidized price supports. They are brazen and shameless.

[rm5691]

In response to kimmonterey:

You really need to do your homework. When you compare the per acre crop yields with the amount of water use on the San Joaquin Valley's westside, you will quickly see that these growers produce more per acre with less water than anywhere in the world! In the spirit of using water wisely, doesn't it make sense to give it to the growers who will produce the most with it? Approximately 60 different crops are grown on the valley's westside most of which end up on all of our dinner plates. One of the solutions to this problem is requiring that more conservation be required from cities so that the water flow can continue to productive farmland.

[waterguys]

This is not as much about drought as it is about environmental regulations. This year wasn't that dry.

Look at http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/products/PLOT_ESI.2010.pdf and http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/products/PLOT_FSI.2010.pdf

Unfortunately all the water the environmentalists have stolen from farmers for the fish hasn't helped the fish. There are so many possible things that are hurting the fish. We should focus on the other issues.

[BDU-33]

A company that developed technology capable of creating water out of thin air nearly anywhere in the world is now under contract to nourish U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq.

The water-harvesting technology was originally the brainchild of the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which sought ways to ensure sustainable water supplies for U.S. combat troops deployed in arid regions like Iraq.

"The program focused on creating water from the atmosphere using low-energy systems that could reduce the overall logistics burden for deployed forces and provide potable water within the reach of the war fighter any place, any time," said Darpa spokeswoman Jan Walker.

To achieve this end, Darpa gave millions to research companies like LexCarb and Sciperio to create a contraption that could capture water in the Mesopotamian desert.

But it was another company, Aqua Sciences, that developed a product on its own and was first to put a product on the market that can operate in harsh climates.

"People have been trying to figure out how to do this for years, and we just came out of left field in response to Darpa," said Abe Sher, chief executive officer of Aqua Sciences. "The atmosphere is a river full of water, even in the desert. It won't work absolutely everywhere, but it works virtually everywhere."

Sher said he is "not at liberty" to disclose details of the government contracts, except that Aqua Sciences won two highly competitive bids with "some very sophisticated companies."

He also declined to comment on how the technology actually works.

"This is our secret sauce," Sher said. "Like Kentucky Fried Chicken, it tastes good, but we won't tell you what's in it."

He did, however, provide a hint: Think of rice used in saltshakers that acts as a magnet to extract water and keeps salt from clumping.

"We figured out how to tap it in a very unique and proprietary way," Sher said. "We figured out how to mimic nature, using natural salt to extract water and act as a natural decontamination.

"Think of the Dead Sea, where nothing grows around it because the salt dehydrates everything. It's kind of like that."

The 20-foot machine can churn out 600 gallons of water a day without using or producing toxic materials and byproducts. The machine was displayed on Capitol Hill last week where a half-dozen lawmakers and some staffers stopped by for a drink.

"It was very interesting to see the technology in action and learn about its possible implementation in natural disasters," said Rep. E. Clay Shaw Jr., a Republican from Florida whose hurricane-prone district includes Fort Lauderdale.

"It was delicious," Shaw said.

Jason Rowe, chief of staff to Rep. Tom Feeney, another Florida Republican, called the technology "pretty impressive."

"I was pretty blown away by the things it's able to do," Rowe said. "The fact that this technology is not tied to humidity like others are makes it an attractive alternative for military bases in the Mideast where humidity is not really an option.

"It seems like it's a cheaper alternative to trucking in bottled water, which has a shelf life," said Rowe, who described himself as a fiscal hawk.

Once deployed, the machines could reduce the cost of logistical support for supplying water to the troops in Iraq by billions of dollars, said Stuart Roy, spokesman of the DCI Group, Aqua Sciences' public affairs firm.

The cost to transport water by C-17 cargo planes, then truck it to the troops, runs $30 a gallon. The cost, including the machines from Aqua Sciences, will be reduced to 30 cents a gallon, Roy said.

Several systems on the market can create water through condensation, but the process requires a high level of humidity.

Aqua Sciences' machines only require 14 percent humidity, Roy said. "That's why this technology is superior and why they are getting the contracts."

[dennisall77]

Gee, maybe there IS something to this climate change stuff. Everywhere in the world climate seems to be slowly changing and causing suffering. Atlanta awash in floods, tornadoes in Kansas in December, devastation in China from deep snows where there never was any before, usually ice-packed shores in Alask now barren, north polar ice nearly gone, mud slides from too much rain, drought and fires from too little in areas where this was unknown, and normally full lake inlets drying up. But hell, let's not have any companies lose any MONEY over any of this! Cockroaches and CEOs will be the only ones to survive.

[OregonJames]

Selfish Oregon... not sharing its water.

California has its water related environmental problems and wishes to spread those issues northward into Oregon by taking their water. As an Oregonian, I would support such a plan AFTER California drains its swimming pools, shuts of ornamental fountains, stops watering golf courses, and addresses the known issues with its crumbling water infrastructure. Millions, perhaps billions of gallons of water is lost through broken and leaking pipes. Millions more through evaporation. Countless billions are wasted just to keep lawns green.

Don't waste all of your resourses and then expect others to generously allow you to waste their resourses too. Oregon needs water for its fish too.

[bubbadubba]

I am sure people buying less because of the depression and companies wanting to keep their profits by buying and selling cheap produce has absolutely nothing to do with it. Expect them to never go back to buying US produce and we can consider that part of our country gone also just like our factories because once they get away with it they never start using US products again.
Yep.

[tvgenius]

I don't get it. As long as I've lived next to California, it's been a dry, dead state. I took Amtrak from San Diego all the way north to Oregon this summer. Except for the last hundred miles or so, everything was dead. And mind you, I live in Arizona, where we get two inches of rain a year. The 'forests' in southern California are a joke. Deserts with pine trees and all sorts of good accelerants for wildfires. Yet for some reason, everyone in California feels entitled to big pools, big green yards, lots of fountains and water features, and don't worry, they can always pipe more water from the Colorado River to LA.

[sjc_1]

Arizona asserted their Colorado River water rights years ago, then put in large golf courses and huge fountains. The Imperial Valley in California grows much of the produce for the nation and had to make do with less water. If you want salads you need water, now the produce is shipped in from other countries.

[californiadreaming]

In Northern California there is a lot of water restriction to protect fish - and it demands a serious amount of cutbacks.

At what point do we allow water to be saved to preserve fish and not to be diverted for other uses?

This article is somewhat deceptive in that there is a ton of water politics in California that people elsewhere do not get to see.

[ocreader]

I agree with Irishlady...this state is a desert, we should've been cultivating drought-resistant plants years ago...roses are pretty and smell nice, but they won't grow in a desert! Water needs to be appropiated for growing food.

[californiadreaming]

Since when are we responsible for growing everyone else food? If you want to come and live here you get a vote in the decision. If not, get your food elsewhere.

[sjc_1]

If California had investing in its Sacramento river levy system years ago there would be no problem. Prop 13 with its "I got mine" attitude reduced funding for schools and water projects. What goes around comes around.

[irishladynm]

Hellooo... California. Is anyone paying attention? Food and health are necessities. A green lawn and shrubbery are NOT. Does it make sense to pay higher prices for food, support with your taxes those you have put out of work with such foolishness, and risk deadly bacteria for a "pretty" yard? Traditional landscaping uses more water than any other urban activity. Here in New Mexico, where I have come to escape such idiocy, zerescape is being brought to a fine and beautiful art. You don't have to live with bare dirt, just get some good sense and deal with reality.

[ocreader]

The state may be in a drought, but, it appears to be partially because of a small fish and environmentalists! However, when one looks at the logistics...it's pretty sad, that one of the most "prime" growing areas is subject to "dust-bowl" conditions, and putting more people on the unemployment rolls!!Not to mention, the importation of produce, having a greater factor of "non-native" insects and possibly "e-coli" or other communicable pestilence!! It, almost seems that those in the state-governing roles, seems to enjoy the precarious position they have foisted upon the "grower/producers" and the citizens who are left to pay for the unemployment and higher food cost!!! Somebody needs to get with the program and start working for the citizens again....need we remind the legisture, this is not a feudal system and we are not "serfs"!!!!!!!!!

[ocreader]

The state may be in a drought, but, it appears to be partially because of a small fish and environmentalists! However, when one looks at the logistics...it's pretty sad, that one of the most "prime" growing areas is subject to "dust-bowl" conditions, and putting more people on the unemployment rolls!!Not to mention, the importation of produce, having a greater factor of "non-native" insects and possibly "e-coli" or other communicable pestilence!! It, almost seems that those in the state-governing roles, seems to enjoy the precarious position they have foisted upon the "grower/producers" and the citizens who are left to pay for the unemployment and higher food cost!!! Somebody needs to get with the program and start working for the citizens again....need we remind the legisture, this is not a feudal system and we are not "serfs"!!!!!!!!!

[geneonlbk]

In Florida we water one day a week. We also water five days a week in that 1/5th of the homes water on any one day which lowers peak demand and stress on water storage facilities.